Former British Steel workers on Teesside who believe they might have developed serious illnesses from years spent working in the company’s coke ovens have just DAYS left to join a group litigation.

More than 30 Teessiders - and hundreds more who worked at UK British Steel sites - have already registered for the group action, amid claims exposure to harmful dust and fumes from steelworks’ coke ovens caused illness from lung cancer to pulmonary disease.

The group action was brought about after hundreds of British Steel workers developed these conditions, alleged to have been caused by working in the “immediate vicinity” of the coke ovens.

In Wales, the number of people already registered is 350 but it’s thought many more are affected.

Law firms representing them say its “extremely important” for anyone who thinks they have a case to come forward by the February 23 High Court cut-off date - or risk missing out on the “justice they deserve.”

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Many of the workers suffering from the conditions have since died, but claims can also be investigated on behalf of the estate of former deceased workers.

Insurers for British Steel have already admitted it was in breach of its duty owed to its employees from 1947 until appropriate respiratory protection was provided to the workforce.

Law firm Irwin Mitchell is acting for more than thirty British Steel workers from the Acklam Iron Works and the South Bank plant.

Roger Maddocks, a partner and expert industrial disease lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, said: “The approval of the Group Litigation Order by the High Court, and the admission by the defendants that until an individual was provided with an appropriate respirator they were in breach of duty, were extremely important milestones and moved the victims and their families a further step closer to securing the justice they deserve concerning the exposure to harmful fumes decades ago at a number of coking plants around the UK.

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“The workers we represent, through no fault of their own, developed serious, and in some cases fatal, respiratory illnesses and lung cancers causing them unnecessary pain and suffering when they should be enjoying their later life with their families.

“Nothing can turn back the clock but this legal action will hopefully provide them with the help, support and treatments needed to make dealing with their illness more comfortable.

“With the deadline quickly approaching, we would urge anyone else who feels they were affected by the working conditions at British Steel to come forward so that they too can join the group action and ensure they do not miss out on the justice they deserve.”

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At the defendants’ request, and with court approval, claims for alleged bladder cancer can also potentially join the group.

The separate deadline for those cases only is April 23, 2018, and the register will be closed to people who have not registered their interest in the litigation.